


In which Peter Parker Needs A Hug

by ThatLineIsLong



Category: Avengers (Comics), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: Awesome MJ, Awesome Michelle Jones, BAMF Ned, Bitchy Aunt May, Good Ned, Hurt Peter Parker, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Angst, Peter Parker Feels, Peter Parker Has a Family, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker is not to blame, Precious Peter Parker, Protective Tony Stark, Self Confidence Issues, Self-Harm, Self-Hatred, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart, mean Aunt May
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-20
Updated: 2018-10-20
Packaged: 2019-08-04 19:36:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,553
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16352921
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatLineIsLong/pseuds/ThatLineIsLong
Summary: (And Tony Stark gives him one)Peter Parker is miserable. He blames himself. For everything.But when Tony Stark sees something that Peter has hidden for so long, secrets come to life and Peter Parker finally gets the hug he wanted.******TRIGGERS WARNINGS: Contains references to self harm!!!*******





	In which Peter Parker Needs A Hug

**Author's Note:**

> Hiya Guys!   
> This fic has been sitting on my laptop for weeks, and I have been debating whether or not to finally release it, and I guess I have finally posted it now!  
> I kind of used this fic as a way of venting my own struggles through Peter, and I guess it had helped me. PLEASE DON'T READ IF YOU ARE TRIGGERED BY SELF HARM. If anyone is struggling and needs someone to talk to, I'm always here <3  
> Thanks! I hope you enjoy it!!

Peter Parker hated himself. He didn’t know why. All he knew was that he hated himself. A lot. 

He didn’t know why he found it so hard to get out of bed sometimes, or the reason why he would spend days at a time feeling numb, and then suddenly jumpy and panicky. He didn’t know why he had lost interest in everything from being Spiderman to playing Lego with Ned. 

It was a Friday, and Peter was due to go around to Tony’s after school to work on the Spiderman suit that Tony knew he wasn’t using as much as he used to. His mentor never said anything. 

He probably didn’t care. 

“Peter!” Mr Smith called, and Peter jumped, sending his Iron Man pen to scrawl across his page in a messy line. “Pay attention!” The teacher snapped, before continuing to drone on about magnetism and the effect it had on how a lamppost worked. 

Out of the corner of his eye he saw MJ and Ned sitting on a desk, their expressions full of pity, a crudely-drawn picture of him looking off into the distance scrawled on a little paper by MJ. He remembered the day they had chosen their seats. Him and Ned behind Michelle and MJ. After the whole ferry incident, Peter had sat away from them, all the way on the other side of the classroom, and Ned had taken Michelle’s empty seat. 

The bell suddenly rang, and Peter packed up slowly, sluggishly, numbly, as he watched the other kids walk out of the door. 

Maybe this would be the last day he would ever see them. The last day of pain. The last day of visiting the little graveyard by the church that was now the home of the three people he so desperately needed right now. 

He walked out of the school, not even bothering to react when Flash sent him tumbling to the side after a surprise nudge to the side. 

Peter gave Happy a fake smile as he climbed into the car. He tried to ignore Happy’s worried glance in his direction, and the way his fingers were tapping hurriedly on the phone as if he were texting someone. Peter ignored it   
because he simply had no energy left. 

The drive was long and slow, and completely silent to the point that Peter could feel his own heart beating erratically. He fiddled with the long sleeves of his sweater absent-mindedly. 

The car halted smoothly, and Peter slid out quickly, not wanting to bother Happy for too long. He felt a lingering gaze on the back of his head as he walked up the steps, but the car drove away eventually, allowing Peter to relax a   
bit. 

“Pete!” Tony called him, and Peter turned around and saw the engineer walking towards him with a big beam on his face. He was wearing a ripped tank top and some oil-stained jeans, and Peter could see the arc reactor glowing   
from his chest. 

Peter really did admire him for that- how could someone make their weaknesses into strengths?

He walked over to him, and fake-smiled at Tony, who’s expression faltered slightly. “Um…hi,” he mumbled, and Tony smile dropped. 

“You okay, Kid?” Tony asked as if unsure, and Peter nodded, avoiding his eye contact and instead looking around at the modern furniture in the living room. 

“Right. Um…you want a snack?” Tony asked, sounding a bit like a worried dad. 

Peter’s stomach rumbled in response, which made Tony chuckle as Peter blushed in embarrassment.

May had told him that he was eating to much, so he had cut down on meals, though, to be fair, there wasn’t enough money for the both of them to have three meals a day, and May worked hard…so Peter didn’t really eat much   
anymore.

Tony led Peter to the unnecessarily big kitchen down the hall. He began opening a few cupboards, scrunching his nose up when he looked around, until he eventually pulled out a packet of waffles and a few bottles of different-  
flavoured syrup. 

“This good?” he asked as he opened up the packets of waffles and split them onto two plates. 

Peter nodded as he tried to conceal his hunger. His mouth was already watering at the sight of the food, which was kind of expected since he had only eaten an apple today.

Tony handed him one of the plates and led him over to the huge island in the middle of the kitchen where they began to eat. 

“So…how was school?” Tony asked. He wasn’t really eating his waffles and was instead staring at Peter concerned. 

Peter stopped shovelling the waffle into his mouth and nodded his head. “Good.” 

His mentor-slash-father-figure frowned. “Good? Good? Want to elaborate?” 

“Uh…it was…um…fun.” Peter trailed off weakly, not really eating his waffles either. 

Tony shook his head. “Karen told me that you have not been eating properly. Happy said that you don’t even talk anymore. You don’t text me. Even Ted said that you’ve been acting weirdly. Oh yeah, and you haven’t been   
spidermanning for 5 weeks.”

Peter almost dropped his fork in surprise. “Wh-what?” He hadn’t realised Tony had been keeping tabs on him. 

“What’s wrong, Pete? You can talk to me, you know?” Tony said gently, and it took a great deal of strength for Peter to not break down and tell Tony everything. 

Instead, he chucked weakly. “N-nothing’s wrong. I-I’m perfectly f-fine.”

“Bullshit. Karen also noticed some…injuries.” Tony said, hesitantly. “And I d-don’t think they’re from your missions, Pete.” 

Peter stood up suddenly and backed away. “N-no. It’s nothing. It was just and accident.”

His mentor sighed. “I know the signs when I see them. Do you want to show me?” Tony said carefully, and got off the chair, walking slowly towards Peter, who was shaking like a frightened animal.

He led the young boy over to the couch in the living room, and they sat down together. To his surprise, Peter began to cry, soft little sobs with his head in his hands, his body angled towards Tony. 

“I-I’m so sorry, Tony. I’m sorry. I d-didn’t…I couldn’t help it!” He cried, his thin shoulders shaking. He suddenly looked over at Tony, and slowly pulled up his sleeve to reveal a criss-cross of cuts all over his pale wrists, each one   
red and raw and still in the process of healing. 

Tony recoiled in shock, which made Peter cry harder. “Y-you hate me now- d-don’t you. I’m just too w-weak to do th-” The boy cried, and Tony felt his eyes well up slightly. 

He grabbed Peter to his chest. “Shhhh…I’m not angry, Pete. Talk to me about it. Tell me why.” Tony said, squeezing Peter tightly. 

Peter let go of Tony and looked him straight in the eye. “I-I…” he tried. 

Tony ran his fingers through his hair and shifted his weight. “Take your time. It’s okay.” He soothed, rubbing Peter’s arm. 

Peter avoided eye contact as he began to speak. “May…she can’t afford to pay for both of us to have food, so I haven’t really been eating properly, and not eating makes me feel all…funny, so I-I guess that’s why I haven’t been   
Spidermanning for a while.”

Tony opened his mouth to interject, to say something, to ask Peter- his son- why he hadn’t just told Tony when it got to that point, but Peter cut in before he could say anything. 

“A-and, I don’t know- I just…I just felt so hopeless, you know? I mean, Aunt May has so much to do, and I’m just weening off all of her hard-earned money…” he said quietly. 

“Pete-” Tony tried. 

“It’s true though! She told me herself.” Peter furiously wiped away at his tears, and Tony could barely resist the temptations to look at the thin red cut that became visible when a bit of his sleeve rolled down. “Anyways…you know   
how Ben died?” He asked sadly. 

Tony nodded. “Yes, you told me.” 

Peter nodded, “I-I was there. I didn’t tell you, but I was there. I saw him die. He- He-” There was a apsue which was silent save for the loud sobs coming from Peter. “He died because of me.” He said finally, taking a deep breath as he spoke. 

“Peter!” Tony said, shocked. “It wasn’t your fault. How could it have been your fault. You were what- 13?” 

“14,” Peter corrected. “And yes, it was my fault. I had just gotten my Spiderman powers so I could have stopped him. It was my fault he was out there anyway. He went out looking for me.” 

Tony pulled Peter into a hug. “You were a child. You still are. It wasn’t your fault. I would never have been as brave as you are when I was your age. Hell, I still sucked my thumb at your age.” Tony said, holding Peter as he cried. 

“I-I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. It’s not your fault. 

“B-but I deserve to be punished for what I did.” Peter said, his head still buried in Tony’s- his dad’s- shoulder. “I deserve this.” 

“You don’t. You don’t.” Tony assured him. 

“I-”

“Stop punishing yourself. You did nothing wrong.” 

And, with that, Tony hugged Peter. 

Tony hugged his son. 

***


End file.
